Patriots claim TE Jake Ballard

[patsox23]

Honestly, you could have saved yourself the effort and guessed what Giants fans on message boards would be saying, and you would have nailed it.
Just do it this way:
If one of our guys was injured and we cut him hoping to bring him back after he cleared waivers, and the Giants picked him up, what would the reactionary, vocal, minority on this board be filling pages of posts with?
Same exact things.

Exactly. Garrett Mills leaps to mind.

 

[Jackson 2]

I was curious, and perused what I could find of Giant fan forums after a brief internet search. Apparently the number one opinion is that BB did this out of spite, followed by his grilling Ballard for info on the Giants offense; he is dumb for spending a whopping $540k on a player who won't play this year; or the tried and true sour grapes logic of not wanting Ballard now that he is no longer on their team.

Ballard claimed by Pats | Big Blue Interactive

New York Giants Message Boards - Patriots claim Ballard - We're in their heads, people.

Right. We'll need to grill Ballard for info so we can be ready for that fourth pre-season game against them.

 

[mayoclinic]

Jake Ballard = Will Yeatman 2.0. The Pats cut the 6'6" 270# athletic Yeatman last year and he was about to sign to the PS when the Dolphins claimed him off waivers at the last minute. The Giants cut the 6'6" 275# athletic Ballard this year and the Pats signed him at the last minute before he cleared waivers.

Just like Nick McDonald was Ted Larsen 2.0. The Pats cut Larsen in a roster crunch in 2010 and was going to sign him to the PS, but Tampa Bay grabbed him. The Pack did the same thing with McDonald last year, and the Pats snatched him up.

It happens all the time. The only slightly different thing is Ballard's injury, but it's still not that uncommon. And in both cases, I think the Pats got a better player than the guy they would originally have kept.

 

[UK_Pat37]

Jake Ballard = Will Yeatman 2.0. The Pats cut the 6'6" 270# athletic Yeatman last year and he was about to sign to the PS when the Dolphins claimed him off waivers at the last minute. The Giants cut the 6'6" 275# athletic Ballard this year and the Pats signed him at the last minute before he cleared waivers.

Just like Nick McDonald was Ted Larsen 2.0. The Pats cut Larsen in a roster crunch in 2010 and was going to sign him to the PS, but Tampa Bay grabbed him. The Pack did the same thing with McDonald last year, and the Pats snatched him up.

It happens all the time. The only slightly different thing is Ballard's injury, but it's still not that uncommon. And in both cases, I think the Pats got a better player than the guy they would originally have kept.

Slightly different scenario with him being injured. There was an article a couple of years ago when someone got claimed off of waiver and some GM or HC spoke out about it in anger....it's just not the done thing. The guy is injured, the Giants wanted to put him on IR but couldn't free up the roster spot at this point in time without having to stick him Waivers.

I'm not sure how his accrued seasons weigh into it all but at this point in time, any player cut has to be put on IR through the Waiver process. There is a point in time at camp where a team can place a player with so many accrued seasons on IR without going through the Waiver process. Whether Ballard would have had to go through Waivers at that point I don't know (maybe someone can fill us all in if i hasn't been done already) bit either way, it's seen by a lot of people as a tactless move.

To an extent I agree....however if he could have gone straight to IR at some point down the line, the Giants should have surely just waited and held that one roster spot of 90!

Genius move by Belichick. I would love to see an offense in 2013 with Gronk, Hernandez and Ballard...that would be the best corps int he league (if you can't call it that already)...that would be unbelievable with the receiving weapons they could potentially have too.

However, Coughlin and Giants fans will be sickened at this move, and you can see why. They had every intention to put him on the IR once he cleared and had effectively told him that. Some coaches seem to think there is a 'mutual respect' when it comes to these kinds of things. It is a business however as we know, and these things happen...regardless of friendships within the league.

 

[Triumph]

He'll be on injured reserve all year. No biggie. If he heals, could be a good addition for 2013.

He was injured in SB46.

 

[Shed83]

You have to wonder how Ballard really feels about the situation.

He might not have mentally prepared himself for a move. He might have been very happy being a giant and living in New York. He possibly didnt even contemplate moving ball clubs.

That said he has a whole year to get used to it

If he can recover fully or to a good degree then the Pats have picked up a good player. A very good move by BB.

 

[mayoclinic]

You have to wonder how Ballard really feels about the situation.

He might not have mentally prepared himself for a move. He might have been very happy being a giant and living in New York. He possibly didnt even contemplate moving ball clubs.

That said he has a whole year to get used to it

If he can recover fully or to a good degree then the Pats have picked up a good player. A very good move by BB.

I'm sure there's a certain amount of disappointment and surprise. But the kid got signed as a UDFA, has already played in a Super Bowl, and after getting cut got picked up by another perennial SB contender with an offense built around the TEs, where he could be part of a long term best TE rotation in the league. There could have been much worse scenarios. Being claimed off waivers by Minnesota comes to mind, among others.

 

[Triumph]

There's nothing like Belichick sending the middle finger toward the Giants just so he can have competition for his #3 TE role in a year :lol2:

The Pats should send them back Steve DeOssie.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

The weird thing about how all this went down is his agent warned/predicted that if he were exposed to waivers some smart team might make a move on him...

 

[mayoclinic]

The weird thing about how all this went down is his agent warned/predicted that if he were exposed to waivers some smart team might make a move on him...

That is weird. Presumably the agent would have some gauge of what interest other teams had.

Florio had this take on the situation:

Even though the NFL has established this procedure to prevent teams from stashing young players who may not be injured, there’s a chance that old-guard owners like John Mara expect certain courtesies to be extended in situations like this. Thus, there’s a chance that Mara and the Giants aren’t very happy right now with the Patriots. There’s also a chance that Pats coach Bill Belichick claimed Ballard precisely for that very reason.

Giants’ gamble on Ballard highlights risks of waiving injured players | ProFootballTalk

That seems a bit extreme. But I'm sure BB got a little bit of pleasure out of swiping Ballard from under the Giants' noses.

 

[Jackson 2]

That is weird. Presumably the agent would have some gauge of what interest other teams had.

Florio had this take on the situation:




Giants’ gamble on Ballard highlights risks of waiving injured players | ProFootballTalk

That seems a bit extreme. But I'm sure BB got a little bit of pleasure out of swiping Ballard from under the Giants' noses.

Eff the Giants.

 

[VJCPatriot]

So BB really is serious about creating the magic TE offense!

Three Tight End Offensive Formation magic 3

The Giants took a risk by waiving Ballard. Surely they knew that there are teams out there looking for quality young players. The Pats in particular have a tight end focused offense, and they can never have enough depth at that position as witnessed in the last superbowl. A healthy Gronk would probably have meant a win for us. I see this as a move by BB to improve his roster. The Giants also made a calculated move to improve their roster, they dropped Ballard for a reason, they felt there was a better use for their 90 at the time they waived him. Those are the breaks. And it has happened to the Pats before, Larsen, Mills, etc.

However, Coughlin and Giants fans will be sickened at this move, and you can see why. They had every intention to put him on the IR once he cleared and had effectively told him that. Some coaches seem to think there is a 'mutual respect' when it comes to these kinds of things. It is a business however as we know, and these things happen...regardless of friendships within the league.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

That is weird. Presumably the agent would have some gauge of what interest other teams had...

Actually no, he shouldn't... But, you know, the excuse is always that things come up in the context of talking to teams about other players. Like maybe a FO is looking at one available client and just happens to mention in passing it's admiration for another...

 

[MoLewisrocks]

So BB really is serious about creating the magic TE offense!

Three Tight End Offensive Formation magic 3

Interesting...and it was being written about in 2009. Hmm... If you wanted to be the guy with the courage to move beyond the experimental stage (a trait that is right in Belichicki's wheelhouse), the first step would be to have 4 TE's on the roster...

As stated earlier, coaches from offices to pubs to seminars have used the Magic 3 as a puzzle for defensive coaches to ponder. The day that a team has the depth at tight end and the courage to move beyond the current experiments we see occasionally, that will be the day that defensive coordinators fear most.

 

[WhiZa]

That is weird. Presumably the agent would have some gauge of what interest other teams had.

Florio had this take on the situation:




Giants’ gamble on Ballard highlights risks of waiving injured players | ProFootballTalk

That seems a bit extreme. But I'm sure BB got a little bit of pleasure out of swiping Ballard from under the Giants' noses.

Firstly I think he wanted to upgrade his team. Secondly he is LHAO that the Giants would expose their best TE to waivers because they didn't want to count him against the 90 man roster. I'm perfectly fine with stashing a starting caliber TE on the 90 man roster and move him to PUP when the season starts. Giants should have known better.

 

[patchick]

It's not much of a risk for the Pats or would it have been for any team.

It's a calculated risk for the Patriots because Ballard may not return to his prior form and is due $540,000 in 2012. But he will become an exclusive rights free agent in 2013, which means that if the Patriots believe his recovery went well they would only need to offer him a three-year deal at the veteran's minimum salary and he would have no choice but to sign it.

Jake Ballard claimed by Patriots off waivers from Giants, according to agent | NJ.com

Oh, I'm not questioning the Patriots' move -- in fact, I'm amazed that nobody else put in a claim before them. I'm just reading tea leaves, because the weird part of the story is the Giants exposing the player to waivers at all.

The 90th roster spot just isn't worth that risk, if the Giants think Ballard can return to form for 2013. So maybe they don't think that?

 

[VJCPatriot]

Apparently Ballard failed the physical.

Jake Ballard | GiantsFootballBlog.com

I also think you're overthinking it. Every player takes time to recover from that type of procedure. This looks like a long term move rather than a short term benefit one. Good thing that there's PUP and IR! Pats have been poached before, I don't see anything wrong with this move for Ballard. Tight Ends can thrive in our system. Ballard at 6'6 270 with catching ability fits the mold of what we're looking for.

Oh, I'm not questioning the Patriots' move -- in fact, I'm amazed that nobody else put in a claim before them. I'm just reading tea leaves, because the weird part of the story is the Giants exposing the player to waivers at all.

The 90th roster spot just isn't worth that risk, if the Giants think Ballard can return to form for 2013. So maybe they don't think that?

 

[patsinthesnow]

Oh, I'm not questioning the Patriots' move -- in fact, I'm amazed that nobody else put in a claim before them. I'm just reading tea leaves, because the weird part of the story is the Giants exposing the player to waivers at all.

The 90th roster spot just isn't worth that risk, if the Giants think Ballard can return to form for 2013. So maybe they don't think that?

Or maybe they are just dumb? Maybe they didn't want to have to wait a whole other season for him to play again.

It's a great low-risk long term move though, he's a starting quality TE, and it makes the offense stacked for two straight seasons without having to add much for 2013:

WRs: Lloyd, Hernandez, Gaffney
TEs: Gronkowski, Ballard, Fells

 

[Gronkandez]

He won't play in 2012. In 2013 he is an Exclusive Rights Free Agent. For other people like me who don't know the details of the ERFA it means the Pats can offer him the veteran minimum and he has to accept it....or quit the NFL. Now that I know that it seems like a decent risk.

(I didn't read all the posts so sorry if this is a repeat of what someone else said.)

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/articles/2012/06/13/injured_ballard_claimed_quickly/?page=full

The team would only have to tender a minimum contract and Ballard would return to the Patriots. He would be a restricted free agent in ’14. Since Ballard was undrafted, the Patriots would only need to tender a minimum contract to retain right of first refusal if another team came calling. Ballard wouldn’t become an unrestricted free agent until ’15.

 

[The Gr8est]

Or maybe they are just dumb? Maybe they didn't want to have to wait a whole other season for him to play again.

It's a great low-risk long term move though, he's a starting quality TE, and it makes the offense stacked for two straight seasons without having to add much for 2013:

WRs: Lloyd, Hernandez, Gaffney
TEs: Gronkowski, Ballard, Fells

Hmmmmm.......

So if Welker continues to be unwilling to sign a longer deal at terms acceptable to the Pats, maybe in 2013 Hernandez takes Welker's role and the Pats go to two more traditional TEs who can both catch and block.

Pats have Welker for 2012 and his "replacement" already on the roster in Ballard.